Lines: Parting
by Marianne H. Stillie
Summary: How do you say goodbye and then hello?
1. Chapter 1 One More

Title: Lines: Parting – Chapter 1: One More…

Author: Marianne H. Stillie

Categories: AU Alternative Scenes and an Episode Tag for The Return Parts 1 & 2; Angst, Hurt/Comfort

Rating: T

Pairing: Ronon & Elizabeth

Series: The Lines Series – Story #12

Season: Season 3

Sequel To: Lines: Reconciling, Blending, Hoping, Grieving, Merging

Summary: How do you say goodbye?

Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters and places for Stargate Atlantis are the property of MGM Worldwide Television Distribution, Sony Pictures Television and Acme Shark Cooper/Wright Productions. This piece of fan fiction was created for entertainment, not monetary purposes and no infringement on copyrights or trademarks are intended. Previously unrecognized characters, places and this story are copyrighted to the author. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is coincidental and not intended by the author.

Archive: Please do not archive anywhere without the author's permission.

Copyright (c) 2007 Marianne H. Stillie

Author's Note: I rarely write chaptered stories and, when I do, I prefer to complete the story before I post any of it. But Coldqueen needs some Ronon/Elizabeth TLC right now so here's the first chapter of this new Lines story. She's also a terrible nag!

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Lines: Parting

Chapter 1: One More…

Damn the Ancestors! Forty-eight hours wasn't enough! As if they hadn't suffered already from the Wraith and the Asurans, now he and Elizabeth were being forced apart by a fresh betrayal from the very same Ancients who had abandoned the humans of this galaxy ten thousand years ago. His mate's people and his own were their children, but it didn't matter to them. Only their superiority and arrogance mattered now that they had their city back!

As Ronon held Elizabeth closely against him watching the sunset from their western tower, he went over his carefully composed speech. They'd been on the mainland this morning, saying good-byes and collecting personal items from their house. He knew he should have taken the time then to explain to her why he couldn't go back to Earth with her, but the words were so hard and he just wasn't ready.

The fresh rage for the Ancients had quickly joined his unstinting hatred of the Wraith and the Asurans. It was being fueled by that preternatural itch he always had when something wasn't right. It had taken hold of him from his first sight of Commander Helia in the gate room. As the bad news had grown with each hour yesterday, his inner dread became stronger than at any time in his past. He knew she had to leave, but not for the superficial reasons of diplomacy and honor. She would be in danger in Pegasus, more than at any time in the past two and a half years. He couldn't lie to her directly but he had to keep the truth to himself about his growing apprehension for the future of Atlantis.

He nuzzled his face hungrily into her hair, breathing in the familiar flower scent that she used. Almost as if she knew what was coming, she tightened her hold around his hands that were locked snugly beneath her breasts. It gave him the last bit of courage he needed to speak. "Elizabeth, I can't go back to Earth with you."

A self-conscious laugh escaped through her words, "The SGC is pretty used to all kinds of aliens by now. You'd fit right in."

In a harsh breath he explained, "I can't run from our enemies. I have scores to settle for both of us." He felt a tremor of fear pass through her body.

The tremor came out in her voice as she said, "You'd better not get yourself killed doing all that revenge business. I do plan to come back someday."

"You know how dangerous I can be. I outwitted the Wraith for seven years." Even as he embraced the bravado, he felt those old familiar barriers rear up, threatening to make him shut down and go numb inside. The brutal seething from his triple hatreds would need a tremendous outlet once he lost his ties to this grounding-place. He would have to forget everything good and loving and trusting he'd learned since coming to Atlantis and finding Elizabeth. He remembered, too well, that emotions were far too dangerous to survival in the world he'd be going into again.

Elizabeth turned around in his arms and kissed him tenderly. She let the kiss linger until her lips reluctantly pulled away. "I still have a lot to do tomorrow, getting all those people and their belongings ready to go. I could really use some of that special Dex TLC to help me sleep."

The defensive wall that had started to make him turn inward disappeared, and he let all the love he shared with her surround him again. A smile came out to reassure her as he said, "It would be my pleasure, Dr. Weir."

XoX

She'd held him possessively after they made love that night, willing his anger to stay at bay for the time they still had together. Her responsibilities as expedition leader filled the day hours but she wasn't so exhausted that she couldn't take pleasure in another night of lovemaking in their bed. Their last hours had to be singular, and she resolved to make them memorable. She had seen in his eyes how hard it was for him, acting as if tomorrow would be just an ordinary day.

They slept very little during their last night. From the moment the sun had risen out of the Lantean ocean this morning, their mutual pain permeated their insatiable need for memories: one more kiss, one more touch, one more release of passion, one more look, one more word, one more keepsake to last an unknown time.

After the sunrise, they took a long, leisurely shower that gave them more of everything they craved. Her hands, through a thick towel, slowly dried his back as he trimmed his beard in front of the bathroom mirror. She let the towel fall to the floor so that her hands were free to caress his warm skin above the towel wrapped around his waist. She couldn't resist the teasing finger that slipped inside the edge of the damp cloth and made its way delicately from one hip to the other. She looked up when she heard his soft laughter.

"I wish I could oblige you, Elizabeth, but even I'm not that good."

She joined him in the laughter, forcing any words of separation and the unknown future away for a little longer. In the bedroom, she laid out her clothes on one side of the bed while he threw his casually on the other side. They savored each other from opposite sides of the bed as one piece of clothing after another covered a naked patch of skin.

While Ronon methodically placed his knives, he watched Elizabeth brush her hair. The need to touch him made her pick up his wristbands from the dresser. He held out his arms for her. Slowly, she put on one band at a time, fastening one buckle at a time. When she was done, his arms were still open, wanting, waiting for her. She leaned into him and he pulled her into his body tightly, their breathing a peaceful, soothing sound of more loving moments. Finally breaking apart, they gathered the last of their things into backpacks.

Roughly, she cleared her throat, "Where will you go?"

"With the Athosians for now."

"Then?"

"Probably the Genii," he said calmly and waited for her reaction.

"Good choice."

They stood at the doors, neither wanting to break the spell of their ordinary day.

"Your people have a custom. When a man and woman marry, they exchange rings as a symbol of the unbroken love between them." Ronon opened his right hand, showing her two of his dreadlock rings resting in his palm.

Her hand shaking, Elizabeth took the larger ring and slipped it onto the third finger of his left hand. "I will always love you, Ronon Dex. Somehow, someday I will come back to you."

Ronon took her left hand and slid the smaller ring onto her finger. "I'll always love you, Elizabeth Weir, and I'll be waiting for you."

They clutched their last moment of the ordinary in each other's arms then both reached out and touched the light bar that would open the doors to the outside world.


	2. Chapter 2 Six Weeks

Title: Lines: Parting – Chapter 2: Six Weeks

Author: Marianne H. Stillie

Categories: AU Alternate Scenes & an Episode Tag for The Return Parts 1 & 2; Angst, Hurt/Comfort

Rating: T

Pairing: Ronon & Elizabeth

Series: The Lines Series – Story #12

Season: Season 3

Sequel To: Lines: Reconciling, Blending, Hoping, Grieving, Merging

Summary: In the Pegasus Galaxy, Ronon and Teyla walk a fragile balance between hope and despair.

Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters and places for Stargate Atlantis are the property of MGM Worldwide Television Distribution, Sony Pictures Television and Acme Shark Cooper/Wright Productions. This piece of fan fiction was created for entertainment, not monetary purposes and no infringement on copyrights or trademarks are intended. Previously unrecognized characters, places and this story are copyrighted to the author. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is coincidental and not intended by the author.

Archive: Please do not archive anywhere without the author's permission.

Copyright (c) 2007 Marianne H. Stillie

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Lines: Parting

Chapter 2: Six Weeks

From the fields on New Athos where dozens of Athosians were weeding the rows of young seedlings, Teyla heard the Ring of the Ancestors activate then shut down. The new village had been built close enough to the ring so that travel and escape were equally convenient. She hoped the new arrival was Ronon. He had been gone since yesterday morning. She knew better than to worry about her little brother under normal circumstances. The past six weeks had not been normal.

Her people had quickly adapted to their new environment after they were forced to relocate by the returned Ancients. She had been surprised when Ronon asked to go with the Athosians. She was sure he would have preferred to go to Belsa where the largest concentration of Satedans had settled. Instead he had thrown himself into the long hours of heavy work that were needed to build the new settlement. When he was not involved in that purely physical labor, he went out with the hunting parties.

Each day that went by saw drastic changes in the Ronon Dex she had known during the past year. The easy laughter and warm smiles she was used to since he and Elizabeth had become lovers then mates were gone. His silences were long and heavy. Even their close friendship had suffered. He had regressed to the closed, emotionally detached man he was when she and John found him.

It was at night, when he tried to sleep away the exhaustion he carried over from the daylight that the true torments came through. The hatred of his enemies that consumed him manifested in his dreams and poured out in heavy vocalization each night. The name he called out to soothe his rage was always Elizabeth's. As much as she wanted to comfort him, she honored his privacy behind the curtained portion of her tent. Each morning when they began another day, she pretended she had heard nothing.

As the first segment of the moon's cycle went into its final night on the new home world, he announced that he would be leaving. He was going to the Genii to rejoin the fight against the Wraith. She had not been surprised. She wished she could go with him but her primary responsibilities were to her people, now more than ever. Their farewell at the ring had been brief and distant. She thought of him often during the next three weeks, wondering if he was safe.

Her answer had come when his Satedan friends, Bract Adair and Solen Sincha, and two Genii carried him through the ring on a stretcher, his leg and hip badly mangled from a raid on a Wraith base. Ronon had joined the Genii and brought with him a large contingent of Satedans, mostly former soldiers like himself who wanted to continue the fight they had been forced to abandon when their home world fell. Bract asked her to care for him. The Genii doctors had done all they could but they doubted that he would ever be able to function fully as the invincible warrior he had been for so many years.

The healing had gone well over the past ten days since his arrival. Fortunately, there had been no broken bones. The medical supplies Carson had left with her made a significant difference in mending the extensive muscle and skin damage and preventing any infection. Ronon's strong, healthy body had also helped. She was hopeful that with time and careful retraining his mobility would be restored.

When she saw him coming down the path from the ring she breathed a sigh of relief. Then she noticed how heavily pronounced the limp was. His physical struggle to move down the dirt path tore at her heart. Whatever he had done while he was gone this time canceled all he had regained during his recovery.

XoX

Ronon had washed and changed clothes then lay on his bed gratefully. The pain in his left leg and hip was almost as bad as when he'd first been wounded. He knew he shouldn't have pushed so hard on the climb but he needed the challenge to prove that he could still scale the Satedan mountain he'd conquered so easily before. That he'd made it only a third of the way was frustrating.

The physical exertion was also a means to escape the loneliness with its growing despair. He shut his eyes, willing an image of Elizabeth to come to life in his mind. The visions of his mate had helped him survive the last time they were separated. He needed to hold on to her the way he had done then. He squeezed his eyes tighter until he visualized their house. The only furniture was an air mattress on the floor in front of the stone fireplace. The pleasant memory was of their first night together in their home. He let himself drift into the comforting moments, hearing her voice, seeing her smile, feeling her body close to his.

He had started to doze off when he heard movement in the tent. He stopped himself from reaching for one of his knives when he realized who was drawing aside the curtain. "I'm fine, Teyla," he mumbled gruffly.

The Athosian woman stood beside the bed, silently taking stock of her friend. She recognized the scrapes and bruises on his hands and arms from his off-world climbing trips before he was injured. "More mountain climbing, I see."

A monosyllabic grunt was his only answer. He kept his eyes closed attempting to bring back the picture of Elizabeth before he lost it. His hands were folded on his chest, his fingers slowly twisting the ring his mate had put on him that last morning in Atlantis. He waited impatiently for the sound of her departure.

Teyla stared at his folded hands. Ronon had always had a nervous habit of absently moving his fingers, usually when he was bored or impatient, thoughtful or annoyed. Since their exile from Atlantis, she had noticed that his old random habit had evolved into a pattern of twisting and turning the dreadlock ring he now wore on his left hand. She waited out his silence.

"I'm leaving tomorrow morning," he said coldly.

"No, you are not!"

Opening his eyes he looked up at her. He wasn't sure whether to laugh or shout in response. He didn't care enough, so he did neither. "Why not?"

"I refuse to be the one to tell Elizabeth that you died on some unknown planet because you were too stubborn to believe that she would come back to you as she promised!"

Ronon's eyes squinted suspiciously. "How do you know she promised she would come back to me?"

Her anger suddenly deflated and she said tearfully, "Because John made the same promise to me. I know he will keep his promise, no matter how long it takes. _You_ have to trust that Elizabeth will do the same. Getting yourself killed is _not_ a good idea."

Teyla's words were like a blow to his pain-clouded mind, a reminder that he wasn't the only one to lose a lover and best friend. He stared at her pensively. "You miss him."

When she didn't respond, he carefully stood up and tenderly wrapped his arm across her shoulders. She fell into his brotherly embrace and began crying into his chest. His large hand rhythmically stroked up and down the back of her head in comfort.

Ronon patiently listened to her escalating tears but she didn't see his heavy silent ones. Elizabeth had made a promise to him with all her heart. It was about time he trusted her to keep it.


	3. Chapter 3 Things Unseen, Words Unspoken

Title: Lines: Parting – Chapter 3: Things Unseen, Words Unspoken

Author: Marianne H. Stillie

Categories: AU Alternate Scenes and an Episode Tag for The Return Parts 1 & 2

Rating: T

Pairing: Ronon & Elizabeth

Series: The Lines Series – Story #12

Season: Season 3

Sequel To: Lines: Reconciling, Blending, Hoping, Grieving, Merging

Summary: On Earth, Elizabeth and John make life-altering decisions.

Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters and places for Stargate Atlantis are the property of MGM Worldwide Television Distribution, Sony Pictures Television and Acme Shark Cooper/Wright Productions. This piece of fan fiction was created for entertainment, not monetary purposes and no infringement on copyrights or trademarks are intended. Previously unrecognized characters, places and this story are copyrighted to the author. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is coincidental and not intended by the author.

Archive: Please do not archive anywhere without the author's permission.

Copyright (c) 2007 Marianne H. Stillie

* * *

Lines: Parting

Chapter 3 – Things Unseen, Words Unspoken

There were eighteen steps around his desk. Add that to the sixteen to the door and back. Then figure in… John Sheppard stopped himself. He really needed to get rid of his Sudoku book addiction. He also needed to stop pacing every inch of concrete floor space in his office. Instead he went back to glancing at his watch every thirty or so seconds as he sat stiffly on the edge of his desk.

What the hell was taking McKay and Elizabeth so long? All they had to do was get Bill Lee out of the way so they could gerry rig an access code. How tough could that be? For McKay that techie stuff was a piece of cake. For Elizabeth, the diplomat who could cajole hardnosed politicians into signing treaties, it was pure intellectual charm. It also helped that she was so beautiful.

At dinner he'd noticed that her natural beauty was more than a little frayed, the unspoken sadness making her face drawn the way it had never been, even in their worst crises. She'd stayed in Colorado Springs for only one reason, to be as close to Ronon as it was possible to be a galaxy away. Seeing her nervously playing with the ring on her left hand while she talked had made the sweet dessert he was eating turn bitter as it slid down his throat. In contrast to Elizabeth's honest outward feelings, the memories he'd packed tightly away since he came back had turned him into a pissy-assed bastard to be around at the SGC. As he sat across the table from her, he'd asked himself which way of coping was better, hers or his.

He wouldn't admit to McKay or Beckett that he hadn't called Elizabeth during the six weeks since they got back. He hadn't been surprised that she never called him. The loves each of them had left behind were too deep, and too hard to avoid talking about if they'd met here on Earth. Her mate and his lover weren't topics for casual conversations. She still had to play the part of the tough expedition leader and he had to hang onto his image as the brave military commander. That underneath both of their facades it was all bullshit had to stay a secret, even from each other. Friends sometimes had to let friends cry alone.

The cell phone alerts had ended one simple awkward meeting and started a series of hectic, very tense ones. She'd insisted on going in his car, their mutual fears and hopes allowing that invisible bond between them to come through. He noticed that the ring twisting became more agitated along with the silence in the drive from the restaurant to the SGC. It gave him the creeps because it bordered on the funereal. Neither had wanted to speculate what news was waiting for them when they got to Cheyenne Mountain. He still wasn't quite sure how they'd gone from Landry's announcement that Atlantis would be obliterated by the Daedalus in a matter of days to their plan to shanghai a jumper and save the day. The really scary part had been how quickly they'd all agreed to do it.

A close look at his watch told him too many minutes had gone by and the antsyness got the better of him. He wanted to be on his way, back to Pegasus, back to his real home. He rummaged in his locker and found a small knapsack he'd dumped in there. Just as he opened a lower desk drawer, the door opened and a rush of sexy red shirt came through it. The smile on Elizabeth's face said all he needed to know.

Breathlessly she said, "We're in!"

"McKay and Beckett?" he asked as he dumped the drawer contents onto his desk. He picked up the small framed photograph on his desk and held it tightly in his hand.

"Changing into camo. They want us to get what we need from the armory and meet them there," she answered. Moving closer, Elizabeth looked at the photograph of him and Teyla.

John saw tears begin to well in Elizabeth's eyes. He remembered that the photo had been taken by her that very special day on the mainland when they'd celebrated the completion of her and Ronon's house.

He took her by the shoulders. "Why are you crying, Elizabeth? We're going home."

A shaky intake of breath stopped the flow of tears. That old familiar Weir look of determination lit up her face. "If I ever have to make a choice between Earth and the Pegasus Galaxy again, I will _not_ leave Ronon!"

He squeezed her shoulders then let her go. Quickly, he finished sorting through the stuff on his desk. Waving two items, he said emphatically, "They'll have to court martial me in absentia before I'll _ever_ leave Teyla again."

Elizabeth smiled teasingly. "Are you taking those back to Atlantis, John?"

Holding up a DVD and CD he said, "I promised Teyla I'd bring these back the next time I was on Earth."

"I Walk The Line and American V: A Hundred Highways. A little heavy on the Johnny Cash, don't you think?"

He stuffed the three items into the knapsack then held up one of those jumbo zip bags filled with popcorn kernels. "For movie nights, and as a new crop for the Athosians," he grinned. Slinging the knapsack over his shoulder he added, "Let's get the hell out of here."

XoX

It was a long way from Georgetown and her poly sci classes to this latest trip through a Stargate wormhole. Physics was never of much interest to her in college. The English language and what it could do in everyday life challenged and absorbed her on a much higher level than pure science. Elizabeth _was_ glad it had been McKay's passion. They wouldn't be traversing millions of light years across two galaxies in such a short time thanks to his Intergalactic Gate Bridge if that hard science hadn't possessed him at an early age.

She was trying to keep focused on the dangerous job ahead of them. Defeating the possibly undefeatable Asurans scared the hell out of her. They could fail and die. Glancing at the three people in the jumper with her, she held tight to her trust and belief in her friends and comrades. They'd come through so much since their arrival in the Pegasus Galaxy. She hoped, and prayed their good fortune and karma would get them through another hopeless situation.

Very gently she let her deepest longing take over a spot in that hope. Being reunited with Ronon was worth any risk. Her parents had assumed her sudden interest in astronomy the summer after she'd turned ten was another of her intellectual pursuits. She never told them about her pre-adolescent fantasy life of traveling around a far away galaxy with her very own Han Solo piloting their intrepid space ship. She'd found the high adventure of space travel far more romantic than the angsty tragic lovers of Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet or her girlfriends' squeals of glee over David Cassidy and Greg Brady. Ronon was no fictional sci fi hero. He was the real thing and she adored him. Whatever gods had been watching over them since he'd suddenly appeared in her life had to have something special in mind. She hoped a full life and a long future were on their agenda. If she had to create a new and stronger faith to support it, she'd give it a damn good try, or die in the attempt.

The jumper slipped through the gate and settled to the ground on New Athos. A brief ten minute trek brought them to the outskirts of the village. They must have seemed like ghostly apparitions suddenly appearing out of the darkness into the light of the campfire in front of Teyla's tent.

She knew she'd never remember what John said to make Teyla laugh. All she would remember were Ronon's eyes locking onto her face. Who smiled first didn't matter. Feeling that familiar warmth radiate around her was exhilarating after the cold dreariness of Earth. Both knew there was no time to talk. That was for later, after they'd taken back their city.

As they entered the tent, Elizabeth felt Ronon's strong hand firmly caress her lower back. The touch was too brief before they had to move apart, but it was enough. They were together again and that was all that mattered.


	4. Chapter 4 Promises To Keep

Title: Lines: Parting – Chapter 4: Promises To Keep

Author: Marianne H. Stillie

Categories: AU Alternate Scenes & Episode Tag for The Return Parts 1 & 2; Angst, Hurt/Comfort, Romance

Rating: M

Pairing: Ronon & Elizabeth

Series: The Lines Series – Story #12

Season: Season 3

Sequel To: Lines: Reconciling, Blending, Hoping, Grieving, Merging

Summary: Back home in the city of Atlantis, Ronon and Elizabeth look ahead to their future.

Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters and places for Stargate Atlantis are the property of MGM Worldwide Television Distribution, Sony Pictures Television and Acme Shark Cooper/Wright Productions. This piece of fan fiction was created for entertainment, not monetary purposes and no infringement on copyrights or trademarks are intended. Previously unrecognized characters, places and this story are copyrighted to the author. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is coincidental and not intended by the author.

Archive: Please do not archive anywhere without the author's permission.

Copyright (c) 2007 Marianne H. Stillie

* * *

Lines: Parting

Chapter 4 – Promises To Keep

With only eight people in the huge city of Atlantis, the main hallway just off the control room was eerily quiet. Ronon waited in the dimness as Elizabeth spoke with General O'Neill in her empty office. Since they'd defeated the Asurans there had been no chance for them to talk privately. The six of them were the heroes who had saved Atlantis and Earth, again. Funny thing was, the day of heroics had left all of them too tired, hungry and relieved to celebrate.

The swift passage of events during that day had kept his mind occupied with the warrior skills he'd had to use to keep them safe. As he and Elizabeth made their way to each of the shield emitters, he'd found himself mentally chanting the litany prayer his mother had taught him as a small boy. Once he'd become a soldier like his father, the childhood words had faded into deep memory. After Sateda fell and he'd lost Melena, his bitterness and rage totally overshadowed its reminders of hope, love and peace. The comforting words had unexpectedly resurrected in his heart as soon as he'd seen Elizabeth's beautiful face on New Athos. At that moment he was truly happy again.

When Elizabeth had been grabbed by one of the Asurans at the last emitter, he'd immediately gone to her aid only to be taken down by two others. His injury had seriously hampered his ability to fight back and he was furious at the helplessness he felt. As they were dragged away, the part of the prayer asking for help in dire circumstances was all he could manage. He didn't hesitate to make a deal with those elusive old Satedan gods that if they got out of this alive he would give Elizabeth the baby she wanted so much.

In the cell, surrounded by his mate and friends, waiting for their plan to either succeed or fail, more of the words drifted to life and he began learning a new patience. He had come so close to dying in the Genii raid. The difference this time was that the risk of death was nothing as long as she was there with him.

Elizabeth had kept her promise to come back to him. He had barely kept his to her. He would have to explain the physical pain he carried with him each day now. She would, as always, accept his need to never stop fighting their mutual enemies. If he did nothing else, now was the time to fulfill the fresh promise that would truly bond them in this life, restoring the total joy and happiness that had too briefly been theirs before they'd lost their child.

Ronon's ever-watchful eyes took in O'Neill's steady steps as the older man walked away from the office. He saw Elizabeth turn toward him, that intense mating instinct between them knowing he was standing there waiting.

As he approached her, they both smiled again, this time with no holding back of emotions. Their embrace caught and held, one body melding into the other, as if it was simply a continuation of the deep closeness they'd shared weeks ago.

He started to move away but she held him tightly against her. She hadn't had a chance to talk to Teyla but she somehow knew that she had almost lost him. He sensed a desperate need to feel that he was real and solid and truly with her that surprised him. Elizabeth had never been the type of woman to cling to him no matter how much danger he'd faced in the past. This was different. Her iron grip on his body told him she was grateful that he had survived this separation more intensely than ever before.

She relaxed her tight hold but only so she could look up at him. Her hands continued to move on his bare arms possessively. "Tell me about your time with the Genii…and this," and her hand slowly moved down the rough cloth of his pants to his right hip and came to rest on his upper thigh.

He should have known she would notice the changes in his body movements, how he favored his right leg. "I'm sorry," was all he could think of to say.

"No need to be sorry. You kept your promise and didn't get killed." Behind the tentative smile was a choked off tear.

He nuzzled his face through her hair, feeling the silkiness he'd missed so much. "And you kept yours. You came back to me."

"I'll make you a new promise, my love. I will never leave you again," she said earnestly.

Looking into her vivid green eyes, he smiled. "I'll take that promise and give you one – I want us to try for another child."

Her voice changed to a surprise of joy, "Are you sure?"

"Uh huh," and he reached up and unzipped her jacket then slowly fingered the neckline of the black shirt underneath it. "I like the new color," he said softly.

"You are incorrigible," she laughed. "The rest of our team is in the mess hall scrounging some dinner. After all that fighting and running around you must be hungry?"

Sliding the jacket carefully off her shoulders, his eyes moved down her body and up again to her face. "Later." His hands slipped under the shirt and caressed the softness of her skin as his mouth trailed kisses down her neck.

"The last time we had a reunion, we didn't leave your room for two days. I'd like to try for three this time," she moaned as his wandering hands unhooked her bra.

"Don't have time for that right now. Too much to do, getting the city and our people back together."

She shivered as his searching hands undid her pants and slid under the material, hungry and grasping on her hips and backside. Choking on an even louder moan she asked, "What are my options?"

As his persistent hands slid further into her clothing, his fingers teasing and taunting between her legs, he laughed suggestively, "Here and now or…"

Elizabeth's mouth on his ended the speculation. She fiercely undid his leather vest and pants. "I'm not on birth control anymore," she panted, her hands greedily moving down his chest.

"Neither am I," he growled low in his throat as her eager hand surrounded his throbbing erection.

Their words were both permission and pleading to release the powerful need between them. Stripping off their already disheveled clothing, they piled them on the floor and lay on top, skin seeking skin, nerve endings on fire. The silence of the deserted city added to the thrill of possible discovery as they rolled on the mixture of smooth and rough materials, hands and mouths everywhere on each other's bodies.

He slid into her urgently and deeply, her body ravenous for his thickness and heat. The movements of their combined flesh were hard and strong, full in, quick out and full in, again and again, faster and faster, escalating toward an enormous release of their insatiable passion. At the peak of pleasure, their combined voices echoed out from the office, bouncing off the walls and windows of the room below.

They held onto each other for longer than they usually stayed in their most intimate position. Finally, Ronon eased to his left side pulling her as close to him as he could. Their breathing slowed as the beads of sweat began to cool and dry.

Elizabeth's mouth found his again, softly, tenderly, her tongue lingering against his teeth and lips. She laughed softly. "You realize I'll never be able to conduct business in my office again after this."

"Yes, you will. As long as you have your clothes on."

Ronon's laughter roared as Elizabeth tickled his most sensitive spot just below his navel. In self defense, he ran his tongue mercilessly along the sweet spot under her left breast. As they rolled on the pile of damp, wrinkled clothing, their peels of laughter added new layers of sound to their earlier cries of ecstasy that the ancient room had already absorbed into its history.


End file.
